Using video, scientists reveal invisible motion, and it’s freaky

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Even though we can’t see it with the naked eye, and our phones can’t detect it when we record video, there is a world of invisible motion going on around us. Now, thanks to the efforts of MIT and what is essentially an algorithm trained in the art of detecting pixels, we can see that world on video.

A team of scientists at MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory have created a process to detect seemingly undetectable movement. A program essentially watches video, but focuses on a change in an image’s pixels — frame by frame — no matter how slight. After the changes are detected, the program amplifies the color of the changes up to 100 times, making them much more noticeable. The process, called Eulerian Video Magnification, ends up looking somewhat jarring. While the candle segment in the video simply looks like smoke is wafting from the flame, the segments featuring the eyeball that’s jittering around or the skin that looks like it is flowing over a baby’s face are things straight out of a horror movie.

Instead of just freaking people out, though, MIT reports that the system is desired by a wide range of groups — law enforcement wants to use the system in interrogations, while other people asked if the system can be used with Google’s Glass in a gambling situation in order to see if an opponent is bluffing.

The process works on any video, as the video doesn’t need to be shot in a specific way, but simply needs to be analyzed after it is shot. So long as pixels change color — even slightly — the program will be able to create a movement overlay. Essentially, the program knows if things are moving because it can literally tell by the pixels. It may have even seen a few shops in its time. To see more examples of the program in action, head on over to MIT’s page.